Shoes off

Gosh - one of my neighbours always removes her shoes in my hall, despite my repeatedly telling her to keep them on. My flooring is nothing special - just laminated flooring, though it does like nice. This makes me think, should I have been removing my shoes when I visited her? 🤔

I have slippers in my hallway for our family and our son built a seat for that purpose to change shoes. If we visit friends we take our shoes off it’s how I was brought up it’s polite. This is a very wooded area and it’s not nice taking dog walking shoes into peoples homes.

Here in Canada it’s a way of life and to come into someone’s home and NOT take off our shoes would seem strange.I do agree though that a seat is very useful.

First it was only our Swedish friends who insisted on shoes off. They provided slipper socks or clogs to wear on their wooden floors.

It was the custom here in Scotland for visiting children to bring plimsolls or ballet shoes to parties.

I don't request visitors to take their shoes off but all my AC have adopted the shoes off policy and like you shelflife I have difficulty putting mine on again.
I may buy them suitable visitors' indoor slippers for Christmas. My feet get cold.

I was brought up to leave shoes in the hall . All my family did it. We always wore slippers. When people visit me I do ask them to bring their slippers. When I visit anyone even if it's for an hour I take my slippers. I would never wear my shoes in anyone's home. When my daughter and family come they leave there shoes in the hall they do in their own home.

When I sold my house I told the estate to tell viewers they would have to leave their shoes in the porch . No one didn't view my house because of my rule and no one who came objected to taking thier shoes off.

When I have had work done in my home if it's major work like I have had done since I moved to my bungalow . Had the sticky backed carpet protector put on all my carpets and not a bit of plaster or paint marked my carpets . When I had my boiler serviced it was ok for the engineer to walk on my hall and kitchen floor but he put shoe protectors on to test my radiator and the thermostat.

It's our home and it's up to us what rules we have . If I go to a person's home I wear my slippers and if there isn't a coaster for my drink I ask for one as I would never put a hot drink onto someone's furniture. It would be disrespectful.

I am not house proud my bungalow is a home the same as my old house. If people like to sit with their feet under them as they sit at their own home I take it as a compliment that they feel so comfortable in my home they can do it. Also if any crumbs are spilt I vac once they have gone. If they have a dog it's welcome in my home . Just vac any hairs up when they leave.

But the no shoe rule applies. I know I will probably have some nasty remarks but so what . We all have our own home rules.

Having to take shoes off in someone's house was literally never done when I was younger. It seems like a very new thing to me.
I'm not alone either. A new neighbour invited us all for a drinks party. Person after person was stopped at the door and told to remove their shoes. There was consternation! Elderly people standing around in stockinged feet were most unhappy. It completely spoilt an otherwise kind invitation. We all live in the same block of flats. Nobody had muddy feet or dirty shoes at all.

To top it all when the hostess came to tea with us she didn't even offer to remove her shoes!

I love tthat memory of taking ballet shoes to a party. At school we had indoor and outdoor shoes. The indoor shoes were proper leather shoes not plimsolls and were all bought from the uniform shop...which must have made a fortune.

Our carpets are very old..not antique just old and we have mostly sealed old floorboards in our Victorian house, so I don't worry about shoes on or off. I sit on the stairs to change out of my boots.
I wouldnt expect visitors to take their shoes off, but I would remove mine with no problem if asked when visiting especially if there is carpet and not hard floor. A bench to sit on would be helpful. Maybe I should take ballet shoes again.

I would hate to reveal my ugly buniony shaped feet in someone else's house.. they look so much better enclosed in shoes!

If they have a dog it’s welcome in my home. Just vac up any hairs when they leave

So the dog’s dirty feet and paws are ok, but a person’s shoes aren’t?

I find it an odd thing but always remove shoes when requested. It is mostly younger people in my experience. Luckily there are usually stairs available to sit on

I always take my shoes off in someone else’s house, but I take a pair of light indoor shoes to change into. I’ve had them since we used to visit a lovely friend who preferred people to sit in their stockinged feet rather than bringing carpet slippers to change into, which for some people offended her! The shoes were a compromise. I’m not terribly fussy about it in my own house as none of our ground floor rooms are carpeted, but though I don’t insist on it, many, even tradesmen, do it as a matter of course.

We were never brought up to take shoes off when visiting I don’t know anyone who did We all wore slippers in our own home etc mostly for comfort and warmth I guess your status in life makes a difference I came from working class stock
(and proud of it) and no one had carpets just Lino and rugs

I live in a transient area so no neighbours to visit and all my good friends live one or two bus rides away so we always meet in the middle for meet ups I can’t remember the last tine I visited or had a visitor in my house apart from my family I ve never asked anyone to take their shoes off though

Some reason offended her🙄

I take my shoes off when I come in, walking over stream after stream of smelly wee from dogs as well as loose bits of mud and leaves etc

I don`t expect my visitors to take their shoes off, unless they have been for a walk but I never have to ask, they always do. I have quickstep flooring, carpet would be very different.

Llamedos13

Here in Canada it’s a way of life and to come into someone’s home and NOT take off our shoes would seem strange.I do agree though that a seat is very useful.

Is it?[Canada]. I never knew that. Explains something. Never even thought about it.

Come to think of it, the two places in rl, of homes I go into where it is requested, in both cases, the woman of the house is not British born.

I have got wise to this eventually and always have a thick pair of slipper socks with non-slip soles in my bag. I sit on the stairs if there isn't a seat available, not much help in a bungalow though.

I would never expect visitors to take off their shoes in my home. I do it when requested eg at my sons as they think shoes carry germs. It doesn’t seem to bother them though that the cats walk all over the work tops in the kitchen!

I've posted this before in similar threads but when I was young my Dad was a GP and his practice was in our house. Over the course of a week literally a hundred patients would troop in and out. Our dining room was the waiting room and Dad's study was the consulting room. Taking shoes off was unheard of and never done. Somehow we survived!

I always take my shoes off when visiting family or friends, all family and most of our friends take their shoes off when they come here.

When we have had parties/gatherings I wouldn’t expect people to remove their shoes, (many do though) I just give the carpet a quick clean with my Vax carpet cleaner the next day.

If someone was struggling to either remove or put on shoes I would get a chair for them.

It is an age thing . My DMiL who died earlier this year aged 98, used to receive visitors with a "come away in and keep your feet on!"
What's the point of dressing in your fancy party shoes if you have to shed them to reveal ice cold stockinged bunions.
I could barely suppress laughter when we were invited to DS proper first flat and asked to remove our shoes. The carpets were white and the only furniture were leather seats and a giant fish tank
Was this the very same human whose bedroom at our family home was practically impenetrable?

Dd lives abroad and it’s normal behaviour to remove shoes. Many people have a basket of slippers for guests to use if they wish.
We always take ours off if visiting as do most of our visitors. All except one couple who never do. They say their shoes aren’t dirty. Of course they are, they have been used daily on the streets and if they wiped the soles with a damp cloth they would see how dirty they are.
We never used to remove shoes,
though one school friends mum always insisted shoes off way back in the 50 s snd i always felt it was strange but it’s accepted snd expected now.
I have a small shoe Horn which fits in my handbag - very useful.

We always take our shoes off and any family visiting do so automatically and Vice versa if visiting them. Why would you want to walk into your house with shoes that have been on dirty pavements where dogs have had a wee and poo (even if picked up some remains) people have spit and worse, you don't know what you've stepped on.